Coal chute and picking table.



F. PARDEE.

COAL CHUTE AND PICKING TABLE. APPLICATION FILED FEB-6,1913- RENEWED FEB.11.1916.

Patented Mar. 28,1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET I- APPLICATION FI LE D FEB. 61 19131 RENEWED FEB1,176,848.

F. PARDEE.

BOAL CHUTE AND PICKING TABLE.

4 APPLICATION FILED FEB. 6. 1913. RENEWED FEB. 11. 1916.

1,176.88. P11911161 Mar. 28, 1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

THB COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH 0., WASHINGTON. D. C.

" unrrn srus FRANK IPARDEE, 0F HAZLETON, PENNSYLVANIA.

COAL CHUTE AND PICEKING TABLE.

Specification of Letters Patent. V Patented Mar. 28, 1916.

Application filed February 6, 1913, Serial No. 746,599. Renewed February11, 1916. Serial No. 77,790.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FRANK PARDEE, a citizenof the United States, and resident of the city of Hazleton, county ofLuzerne, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements-in Coal Chutes and PickingTables, of which the following isa specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

The invention relates and applies. to the chutes in a breaker, alongwhich the coal with mixed slate and bone descends after being sized. Thecommon. practice of stationing a certain number of men or boys by theside of these chutes to inspect the mixed materials and pick out theslate and bone, is attended with a loss of time and uncertain results.There is often a difliculty in detecting the foreign substances, andpassing pieces escape notice that should have been examined and removed.The men sometimes delay the mixed substances with their feet orotherwise, but in such case the materials stack up and the position ofthe men with respect to the mixed materials, makes a pro-per examinationdifficult.

The objects of the present invention are to provide suitable pickingstations, with means for controlling the flow and movements of the mixedsubstances, and present them in a proper light and edge position fordetecting impurities; and to aid the men or boys in removing the slateand bone so that it may be done with less trouble and with moreefficiency than has heretofore been possible.

The invention consists in what ma be termed a combined coal chute andpicking table, having certain novel features of construction to; behereinafter more fully de-' scribed, and distinctly claimed, with suchlatitude or scope as may properly belong to the present subject-matter.

In the drawings Figure 1, is a side elevation of the structure, showingupper and lower picking tables and connections adapted to be supplied bya single ordinary breaker chute; and this figure also shows leading offconnections for the slate and bone. F'g. 2, is a plan view of the same.Fig. 3, is a perspective view of the feed connection for two sets ofpicking tables, a part of the upper one only being shown, while thelowerpicking tables and the bone and slate connections, are omitted. Fig. 4,is a plan view of a modified formof picking table, and Fig. 5, a sectiontaken on the line 5, 5, of Fig. l.

The device or apparatus takes up a certain space in the regular courseof transit or descent of the materials, and is to that extent asubstitute for the ordinary or common breaker chute. The breaker chutesupplies the mixed materials; it connects with the upper and lower endof the apparatus, and the continuity of transit may be preserved inwhole, or, in part. The stream of mixed substances is preferably dividedand dis tributed over several tables forming upper and lower sets, whichgive a better opportunity for examination. In this form of embodimentsome of the pickers may concentrate their attention and confine theirinspection to the materials passing over the upper and others to thosepassing over the lower tables. The drawings show one set of pickingtables above another which are supplied by a single breaker chute, butthere may be any desired number likewise supplied. The picking tablesmay connect or be connected with the usual coal chute in any desiredway. The sets of picking tables, as shown, are divided longitudinally bya partition on each side of which there is one picking table at whichmen or boys may be stationed. This duplex form of structure with one setof tables below another, may in reality be regarded as providing fourpickingtables, or two sets, at a single picking station and the numbermay be increased at will or. to the limit of the capacity of the supplychute above them.

In the drawings or, represents the base or floor on which the uprightsupports a, a a are secured. The supports sustain the structure on aproper incline or pitch as illustrated. The uppermost part of thestructure which receives the mixed substances from the breaker chute, isa level or flat plate 6, with a side flange b, and with a bend b and alaterally inclined surface b for deflecting a portion 'of the supplycoming from the breaker chute, to a plate or part 5 having a bent upcorner W, from which some of the substances are directed and pass to thelower picking table, as presently explained. The plate I), also A secondplate or' part c, connects atits" upper end with the plate I), but is ofa different formation. The plate or part-c, has

side flanges 0, c and widensor spreads from its upper to its lower end.The'part 0, has a bottom which is level orflat practically across theupper end, but it is bent diagonally from its two upper corners towardthe center of the lower end, so that the flat surface 0 forms a V.Theadjacent surfaces 0 0 on each side of the V, incline upwardly towardthe side flanges '0, 0 and widen or diverge from the upper to the lowerend of the section a. At a certain distance, approximately one thirddown from the top of the part c, a gate (Z, is shown, which swings on arod d, passing through the flanges 0, 0 The rod 01, also forms a handled near the side 0 for controlling the, gate (Z. It is sometimesdesirable to check or hold back the flow of mixed substances from aboveand the gate makes provision for that purpose.

The lower end of the part c, connects with a third and shorter sectionor part 0, having ,a bottom surface which inclines laterally upward oneach side, and at the center of which a division is made between theselateral inclines by an uprising flat or level partition 6. The partition6, starts from ,zero or thereabout on the upper middle, of

the bottom of the part 6 and attains sulficient'height at the lower endthereof to deliver the materials in divided streams. This division ofthe mixed substances and their 1 delivery to the picking tables on eachside of the partition 6, is also aided by convergent flanges or guides 60 on the part or section 6. V

The bottom formations and inclined surfaces on the parts 0, and 6, theirflanges and guidesserve to settle and adjustthe materials insucha way asto give them a fairly 6. The upper end of the partition f, is

shown as being provided witlra projection f and a winged part or flapper7' secured at its upper end and so as to turn on a pivot and be tippedor tilted to release or hold back the inixed'materials at the'upper endof. one or of theother'table.

from'w'hi'c'h' a lateral upward incline to the edge is made. The outeredge is shown as being fini'shed and left free by the formation ofdownwardly extending flanges f at the side. The inner flanges j, extendpartially up on the sides of the partition f, and are in effect a partof that partition in thestructure as illustrated by the drawings Thelower initial parts and table sets are substantially the same as theupper ones. Apart of the mixed materials which come from, the breakerchute are deflected by the of feed-chute is formed'and part of the materials coming from the breaker chute is led to and through severalsections, namely,

h, which corresponds to the upper section 7),?2', which corresponds tothe plate orpart c; j, which corresponds to the plate or shorter sectione; and a set 'of picking tables/0,110, like those designated as f, f,directlyabove them. ally inclined from inner flanges ,Zc, 70', and thepartition between them is a platejlc which extends up and connects underthe plates 7', f. At the upper end of'the partition plate Z2 there isalso a flapper or gate 70 for controlling the downflow of themixedsubstances from the sections: or parts leading to these lowerpicking tables. v

The. leading ofi' chutes 1,1, are for slate" and bone respectively.These chutes are shown as being provlded wlth gates Z, Z,

and locking loop-wires Z Z It is sometimes The lower picking tables arelater-;

desirable to reinspect the pickings which iare cast into these chutesand by'having lockingdevices for the gates, the materials picked fromthe coal chute maybe retained for a time above the gates and areinspection of them made before they released.

In the modified form of picking illustrated by Figs. l, and 5, theprincipal variations. commence at the uprising part or partition m,which corresponds wlth the partition 6', previously descrlbed, butta'kesits uprising from the bottom of a section m, corresponding with thesection 0, thoughi'it is shown as having straight side flanges m belowwhich there is a section a, corresponding to the section 6. The sectionat, in the.

scribed, but it commences at the terminus of the uprising partition m,which is at the lower-end of the'section m or-"u er -end p a PP arefinally.

The partiof the section 92. The form of gate n varies somewhat from theflapper f being hinged to the side flanges n, n, by straps n, W,

instead of being pivoted like the flapper i on the form alreadydescribed.

In the modified form the duplex picking tables 0, 0, are each providedwith an upper outwardly inclined ridge or ledge 0', which is joined atone side of. a flange 0 to the central partition, and is finished at itsouter edge by a bend or descending flange 0 from which the outer part ofthe table inclines upwardly and is in turn finished by a turned downflange 0*, in the same manner as the outer edge flanges of tablesalready described. The ledge or inner part of the tables 0, 0, receivesmaterials directly from the lower bottom end of the section or part 92,next above, while the outer part of these tables is shown as receivingmaterials by a drop from the lower part of the bottom of the end of thesection 12, or they may receive materials which topple and gravitatefrom the ledges 0. In this modified form of structure, there may be anydesired number of sets of upper and lower tables, or, in this and theone previously described, a single instead of a duplex table may beused, or there may be upper and lower single tables.

As a whole the structure illustrated, presents or comprises the pickingtable, a level or flat runway, and a partly level or flat and partlyinclined runway, and an inclined runwayconnected therewith and with thetable. The words level or flat are used in a relative sense todistinguish from intersecting inclined surfaces or planes.

The details of construction which have been given in describing what atpresent is contemplated as the best mode of applying the principle ofthe invention, may be varied in a number of ways neither illustrated nordescribed.

In practice, the mixed materials coming along the breaker chute abovethe picking station structure, as above described, pass upon and overthe transverse flat surface of the plate 6 and some of such materialsare deflected by the transversely inclined surface 6 to the part b anddrop to the lower picking table and near the bent up corner [2 The mixedmaterials which go to the upper picking table pass along the plate 5 onthe flanged side 6", and on to the transverse flat surface of the nextlower plate 0 and are parted or distributed by their passage over thetransversely inclined diverging surfaces or V-surface of the plate 0.The same mixed materials then pass on to the plate 0 taking such lateraldirections as may be given to them by the uprising partition 0, fromwhich they are delivered in divided streams to the hand picking tables ff. The action on the mixed materials durlng their passage over and alongthe surfaces stated, is such as in most cases to present an edge view tothe men or boys at the sides of the table which aids materially in thedetection and picking of the slate and bone from the pure or commercialcoal.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is 1. In a. coal chute, a picking stationcomprising a runway whereon the bottom surface is transversely flat fora certain distance, a lower runway connected therewith and having apartly flat and partly transverse inclined bottom surface, and a stilllower third runway connected with the second one, said third runwayhaving diverging inclined transverse bottom surfaces, and a pickingtable connected with said third runway.

52. A combined chute and picking table for coal, etc., comprising apreliminary runway, a second runway connected therewith and adapted tochange the position of passing mixed materials, a third runway dividedand inclined, and a set of hand picking tables connected with saiddivided runway, each of said picking tables being accessible fromopposite sides.

3. In a coal chute, a picking station, comprising a hand picking tableand a feedplate connected therewith, said feed-plate having bottomsurfaces transversely inclined toward the center and an uprising centralpartition, whereby the mixed materials are delivered in divided streamsto the said picking table.

FRANK PARDEE.

Witnesses LILLIAN SAUNDERS, ANNA W. WETTERAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

